FC Porto Vs. Manchester City, 2012 Europa League: Dragons Without Cup-Tied Additions

Manchester City could opt to rest some of their big stars like Sergio Aguero, David Silva and Vincent Kompany against FC Porto, but they'll still be able to field a very competitive lineup that indicates that they're taking the competition seriously. The Dragons aren't having the best season in Europe or domestically, but have the core of the team that won last year's Europa League.

Yaya Toure and Kolo Toure are both back from the ACN as well, while Carlos Tevez is back from his exile, but none will feature on Thursday night.

The biggest battle in this match is likely to be down the flanks. Porto's fullbacks are excellent at getting forward and giving them team width when their wide forwards cut inside, but that will provide space with City to counter into. They're great at countering quickly down the wings, so the positional discipline of Danilo and Alvaro Pereira, as well as how well the holding midfield players cover them, will be key.

Projected Manchester City Lineup (4-4-2): Joe Hart; Gael Clichy, Stefan Savic, Joleon Lescott, Pablo Zabaleta; Samir Nasri, Nigel de Jong, Gareth Barry, Adam Johnson; Mario Balotelli, Edin Dzeko